For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but mighty before God to the casting down of strongholds, casting down imaginations, and every high thing that is exalted against the knowledge of God, and bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ; and being in readiness to avenge all disobedience, when your obedience shall be made full (II Cor. 10:3-6).

“Captive Thoughts” is dedicated to bringing every thought captive to Christ through the study of the Westminster Confession of Faith and Catechisms, with primary focus on the Westminster Shorter Catechism. This effort is a compilation of several years of catechetical study conducted at Westminster Orthodox Presbyterian Church, Westminster, California, by its Christian Education Committee and the author of this site.

Monday, February 25, 2019

Westminster Shorter Catechism Q34

The Doctrinal
Heading for this section of questions (Q34-36)is The Benefits of Redemption: Adoption and
Sanctification. (see Harmony
Index)

We are in the section of the
catechism which deals with the several benefits flowing from our effectual call
in Christ. As a reminder, those benefits are justification, adoption, and
sanctification, and the several other benefits which accompany our life in
Christ. The previous question dealt with justification. Now we consider adoption.

Again, may the Lord grant us understanding and faith as we study
to show ourselves “approved unto God, …rightly dividing the word of truth” (II
Tim. 2:15).

***********

WSC Q34. What is adoption?

A. Adoption is an act of God’s free grace[a], whereby we are
received into the number, and have a right to all the privileges, of the sons
of God[b].

[a] 1John 3:1

[b] John 1:12; Rom. 8:17

Question #34 asks what
adoption is, and answers that adoption is the act of God’s free grace by which
we become his sons, with all the rights and privileges of being his.

Comments and
considerations:

Whereas justification dealt
with being made righteous in God’s sight, so adoption has to do with being made
a member of God’s family, a “joint-heir with Christ” (Rom. 8:17). Our modern
understanding of adoption differs from its usage in Scripture, and we must be
careful not to miss the implications of the biblical term. In Greek and Roman
culture, particularly at the time when the Apostle Paul used this term, fathers
viewed their children almost as slaves, not as privileged heirs. This is the
attitude that Paul is referring to in Gal. 4:1-2—“Now I say that the heir, as
long as he is a child, does not differ at all from a slave, though he is master
of all, but is under guardians and stewards until the time appointed by the
father.”

So from a biblical
perspective, adoption involves not only a new quality of life, but also a new
relationship with deep and rich implications. This also gives us a true picture
of humanity in rebellion prior to adoption. We were slaves to sin, lost,
despairing, and totally unable to bring about a change; only the Father’s grace
could make us sons.

Consider our modern
understanding of an orphan: He may not be aware of the difficulty of that
condition, or discontent in it; but eventually the orphan is adopted into a
family. If very young, he may be totally unaware of this great change. In some
cases, the significance of adoption may be totally missed, while in others, the
adopted child may comprehend and appreciate the implications of adoption.
Compare this situation to that of a son, an heir-apparent, in New Testament
times: That child is fully aware of his condition, and fully comprehends the
breadth of the privileges and blessings which are nevertheless out of reach. He
is shackled not by iron but by the customs of his culture, dependent upon the
whim of his father, one who, up to a point, sees him only as a slave without
rights or status.

Or consider the situation of
the prodigal son (Luke 15). That younger son reached the age where he could
assume his inheritance and privileged status; but he ran away from the father
who had raised him to that position, squandered all his riches, and found
himself destitute and without hope. Having once forfeited the status and
privileges of a son, he can hope for nothing less than a return to the slave’s
position. This young man, “not worthy to be called [a] son,” knows the true
despair of being lost indeed. Is this not a true picture of the human race—made
in the image of God, yet in rebellion, never assuming their rightful place?
Finally, praise God, those who are indeed sons respond to the effectual call,
cease to suppress the truth in unrighteous (Rom. 1:18) and say as the Prodigal,
“Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you.” The story continues,
joyfully, “And behold his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and fell
on his neck and kissed him, …saying to his servants, ‘Bring out the best robe
and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet.’” Is
this not the adoption of which we speak, the coming into our own as joint-heirs
in Christ, accepted in the Beloved? Has he not “written eternity upon our
hearts” (Ecc. 3:11), so that we know and return to him who has made us, the One
“in whom we live and move and have our being” (Acts 17:28)?

The LORD is merciful and
gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in mercy. He will not always strive with
us, nor will He keep His anger forever. He has not dealt with us according to
our sins, nor punished us according to our iniquities. For as the heavens are
high above the earth, so great is His mercy toward those who fear Him; as far
as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us.
As a father pities his children, so the LORD pities those who fear Him. For He
knows our frame; He remembers that we are dust (Ps. 103:8-14).

Even so we, when we were
children, were in bondage under the elements of the world. But when the
fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born
under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive
the adoption as sons. And because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit
of His Son into your hearts, crying out, “Abba, Father!” Therefore you are no
longer a slave but a son, and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ
(Gal. 4:3-7).

Paul uses this Chaldean
vocative “Abba,” which means “Father,” both in Gal 4:6 and in Rom. 8:15. It
relates in both places to adoption, saying in essence “Father, Father.” People
talk of the universal fatherhood of God for all mankind, especially in
rationalizing a supposed universal salvation; and a case can be made, as Paul
acknowledges in Acts 17:29, for the “offspring of God.” But as we have seen in
this catechism lesson, that offspring is in rebellion. Its cries of “Father”
mean nothing in comparison to the joyful, Spirit-filled, triumphal cry of the
reconciled and adopted heirs in Christ: “Abba, Father!” To be adopted in Christ
is to be an heir indeed.

See how the Larger Catechism
states this, and how the Confession defines the expanse of blessing upon the
adopted in the harmony that follows for further study:

Q74. What is adoption?

A.Adoption is an act of the free grace of God,
in and for his only Son Jesus Christ, whereby all those that are justified are
received into the number of his children, have his name put upon them, the
Spirit of his Son given to them, are under his fatherly care and dispensations,
admitted to all the liberties and privileges of the sons of God, made heirs of
all the promises, and fellow-heirs with Christ in glory.

Training Hearts and
Teaching Minds Questions:

1.Read 1John 3:1-2. Many things are implied in this text. But taken
as a clear statement of a believer’s new status in Christ, what is a believer’s
relationship to God now, that didn’t exist before he or she came to
faith? What is a believer’s relationship to the world now? What is a
believer’s future, that hope which wasn’t a reality before coming to
Christ in faith? And what is a believer called?

2.Read Rom. 8:15. “Abba” can be translated simply as “Daddy.” What
does this verse tell us about our relationship with God as his children?

3.When we become the children of God, our sins are forgiven, and
there is no more fear of eternal condemnation (Rom. 8:1). However, does that
mean that from now on we can sin without fear, that God will overlook the wrong
that we do? How does God deal with our sins now that we belong to him? See Heb.
12: 5-10.

4.We are given many titles and possessions as God’s children. Rom.
8:16-17 describes one such thing. What possession does Rom. 8:16-17 describe?
What should we understand about it?

5.Being a child of God has its privileges and its responsibilities.
Rom. 8:28-29, (especially verse 29,) describes a central purpose within our
privileges and responsibilities. Rom. 8:29 says that we are to become more and
more _______________.

A.Adoption is an act of God's free grace[a],
whereby we are received into the number, and have a right to all the
privileges, of the sons of God[b].

[a].1John 3:1

[b].John
1:12; Rom. 8:17

WLC Q74. What is adoption?

A.Adoption is an act of the free grace of
God[a], in and for his only Son Jesus Christ[b], whereby all those that are
justified are received into the number of his children[c], have his name put
upon them[d], the Spirit of his Son given to them[e], are under his fatherly
care and dispensations[f], admitted to all the liberties and privileges of the
sons of God, made heirs of all the promises, and fellow-heirs with Christ in
glory[g].

[a]1John 3:1

[b]Eph. 1:5; Gal. 4:4-5

[c]John 1:12

[d]2Cor. 6:18; Rev. 3;12

[e]Gal. 4:6

[f]Ps. 103:13; Prov. 14:26;
Mat. 6:32

[g]Heb. 6:12; Rom. 8:17

THE WESTMINSTER CONFESSION
OF FAITH

CHAPTER.
XII

Of
Adoption.

I.All those that are justified, God
vouchsafeth, in and for his only Son Jesus Christ, to make partakers of the
grace of adoption[a], by which they are taken into the number, and enjoy the
liberties and privileges of the children of God[b], have his name put upon
them[c], receive the spirit of adoption,[d] have access to the throne of grace
with boldness[e], are enabled to cry, Abba, Father[f], are pitied[g],
protected[h], provided for[i], and chastened by him as by a Father[k]: yet
never cast off[l], but sealed to the day of redemption[m]; and inherit the
promises[n], as heirs of everlasting salvation[o].

There’s
an interesting word our father’s used in the Confession that lends to further
study: vouchsafeth.It is fair to say it is little used today,
but how might its definition assist us in understanding the precious truth of
Adoption?What implications might it garner
in our thoughts?

Also
note and list for grateful and praiseworthy consideration the twelve points that
follow and flow from Adoption categorized in the Confession in harmony to WSC
Q34.

About Me

Ruling Elder at Westminster Orthodox Presbyterian Church. Currently serving as the Principal of Covenant Christian Academy, after a 45 plus year career in operations and production management in the electric utility and medical device industries.
Married to my best friend Cindy. Blessed with three sons and one daughter, along with three daughters-in-law and one son-in-law; and seven grandchildren.
I also serve as a Ruling Elder for an OPC church planting effort in Pearl City, Hawaii, and as camp registrar for the Blue Ridge Bible Conference.

Note: The catechism proof texts associated with the questions on this site are a compilation of those used by the original writers, various editions, reference materials, and studies.

Additional Resources

Note: The questions found at the end of each “comments and considerations” section are based and developed from the content and comments found in Starr Meade Family Devotional book, TRAINING HEARTS, TEACHING MINDS, P&R Press.Obtaining a copy of that excellent book is most beneficial, useful to this study, and highly recommended.